Air show returns to New Garden

Posted by Rich Schwartzman on September 1, 2022

Pilot Matt Younkin shows off some acrobatic flying skills with his Beach 16.

A dozen pilots and planes were on hand, and so were some classic cars at the 49^th annual New Garden Flying Field Air Show. It was originally scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 30, but the threat of bad weather pushed it back until Wednesday.

The show had gone through some other changes during the last few years. COVID prevented the 2020 show, and then came a schedule change because of President Joe Biden.

The show is usually a two-day weekend event, but that changed after Biden became president. Airport Manager John Martin said the reason is that the field in New Garden is within 12 nautical miles of the president’s home in Delaware. When he’s there on the weekend, the airport comes under a TFR or temporary flight restriction. New Garden becomes part of a no-fly zone around Biden's home.

A P-51 Mustang is considered by some as one of the best American fighter aircraft of WWII.

“We haven’t had an event here in New Garden in the last two years,” Martin said, “but we’re excited to get it back up this year.”

So, this year at least, it became a one-day, midweek event. That fact did not deter the enthusiasm of visitors who “oohed” and “aahed” as vintage planes did loops and rolls.

The event was marked with the appearance and flight of one of only four or five remaining Japanese Mitsubishi A6Ms still airworthy. The plane is more commonly known as the “Zero.”

Pilot Mark Murphy rolls his Japanese Mitsubishi A6M, “Zero.” The craft was highly maneuverable. Because of the red circle marking, a stylized version of Japan’s Rising Sun flag, some American marines and sailors referred to the plane as a meatball.

Pilot Mark Murphy, from Albany, N.Y., said he was attracted to the plane because of its historical significance. He likes flying it because it’s “light and nimble,” he said. Murphy confirmed that its agility was a problem for U.S. Navy and Marine pilots during WWII. The Zero was better at slow-speed maneuverability. While the U.S. Corsair and Grumman F4F Wildcat were superior in other phases of combat, it was unwise for U.S. pilots to get into a traditional style of a dogfight with the Zero.

Also on hand were radio-controlled model aircraft, skydivers, and a slew of classic cars, most of which had vent windows, something not seen in modern cars.

Ground transportation was also on display. A 427 Corvette Stingray Turbojet is one example.

About Rich Schwartzman

Rich Schwartzman has been reporting on events in the greater Chadds Ford area since September 2001 when he became the founding editor of The Chadds Ford Post. In April 2009 he became managing editor of ChaddsFordLive. He is also an award-winning photographer.